2021a1 20211218 jdrummond

(2021 Dec 18 UT - about 30 minutes ago) I could easily see it with 11 x 80 binoculars and even a 40mm finder scope. I couldn't see it with the naked eye. I would say the magnitude is about 4.5 (hard to be precise with so few comparison stars in the twilight). I based this on TYC 6900 2236 (mag 4.5) and TYC 6896 2102 (mag 4.8). It was interesting that there was no sign of it (that I could 'see') last night and yet tonight it stood out fairly easily.

It was about 10 degrees above the W-SW horison in the nautical twilight. Through the 41cm (16") f4.5 Meade Newtonian the coma looks orange-ish (perhaps from Rayleigh Scattering). I would say the head has a DC of ~6. I believe that there is quite a fan-shaped tail (short and fat) pointing away from the Sun. It is about 0.5 degrees long - but hard to tell in the twilight and full Moon. I used the jiggle-the-telescope method to confirm it. 

I also imaged it, 6 x 1-40 sec exposures stacked, 41cm f4.5 Newtonian, STF8300M CCD. Attached.

C/2021 A1 (Leonard) from Gisborne, New Zealand